Talk about shooting yourself in the foot!

Our worst move was on the late 70s. We were leaving Scotland and heading for Canada. The firm was called Whites. You still see them around. They sent two young men who were hopeless and dropped a chest of drawers which rolled down a slope and hit a wall. They thought it was funny. Fast forward three years and the furniture which had been in store was delivered to Lincolnshire. Same company. There were holes in mattresses and the sofa had a gash down the front. Everything was black and dirty. It must gave been stored uncovered.

The last move five years ago went very well. We used a small private company and the men couldn't have been more helpful.

Ward Thomas are good.

They were all going into store as well, not just a straightforward move!

I managed to stop the young lad from Pickfords throwing my books into a tea chest any old how - some open with pages creased!
That was a few years ago now, he must be a middle-aged lad by now and I hope he has either learnt how to pack properly or found a different job.

We only ever used Pickfords once! Big mistake.It said 'Pickfords, the careful movers' on the van ( make that careless movers.) we were not moving very far, same village, but they managed to break lots of things by terrible packing and bumping into things.

A lot of Pickfords people are sub contractors and so not always the best or most experienced. We always used local firms with a good reputation.

I used a local removal family firm to move my parents goods to a storage unit in my town and they were just brilliant. We've used them several times since for various removals and the service has been of the best - nothing too much trouble. Perhaps local firms might be worth investigating first for moving - with references from local people for reassurance.

I've moved twice in less than 5 years,first time I found a local company who were members of the Trade Association. Great company, provided lots of boxes & even helped with last minute packing. They had their own storage facility which we used for 1 week, great lads & good service.

Last time I moved again I used a local company, recommendations from friends helped me make my choice from 3 quotes. What a joy they were, packed all my ornaments, china & glass. Loaded my worldly goods on moving day & then following day they drove from Somerset to Devon to put everything into storage. Absolutely first class service. Good luck with the move

Update :

They sent a revised quote

Still couldn't spell either his first or surname !

I'm at a loss to understand why they would do this ? How hard is it to check and spell it correctly?

Glad we've taken the other companies quote.

Oh gosh... stay well away from that company. If they cannot get your name correct and the right quote to you what chance have you got of them getting the job done correctly.

When we moved up from Cornwall we had our furniture in storage for a couple of months. As our house is of the road and not easy to find I sent them a detailed map to help with the delivery. Maving arranged to meet them at the house "first thing" in the morning we weren't best pleased when they didn't turn up till lunch time. It turned out that they hadn't bothered with my map and had ended up going to a place with the same name but in the next county!

Oh my goodness petra that sounds like my worst nightmare.

The last time we moved - 30 years ago from the outskirts of Blackburn to London - we used Pickfords too as my Dad had convinced us that they were the best (we'd used small local firms on previous occasions and had been happy with them).

The first thing the men asked when they arrived was "where's our cup of tea then?" With two children and a dog to sort out and a long drive ahead of us, the last thing we needed was to root around for teabags, mugs, etc., but we did it to keep them onside. I found them rude and unhelpful and things went downhill from then on. I expect it's all the luck of the draw.

We're having everything packed to Galen , one less thing to worry about.

Last time we moved, 23 years ago, I went to Spain on business and left Grampy and our 2 young daughters to it ? It was the perfect move!

Last time we moved (38years ago) we used Pickfords. Expensive I know, but worth it for the care and attention to detail. They packed everything for us ,as I was away having started my new job and was camping out in the new (empty) house.

*Chaleygirl
"a very stressful time" How about this one.
We were moving most of our worldly goods from uk to Bulgaria ( before they went into the eu.
The Romanian Lorry driver picked up the Lorry in Essex. When he got to Budapest he was informed that he wasn't getting paid ( don't ask)
He just left the Lorry and went home to Romania.
Bear in mind I've only been in the country for a month, living in a house with the last occupants furniture and I can just about say good morning in Bulgarian.
That was a bad day.

It came from a comment about anyone can have a bad day Eloethan ...and she certainly did

What has Diane Abbott got to do with a post about a removal firm?

We've taken one of the other quotes, it was a good price but more importantly we liked the man and what he had to say. Its true people buy from people !

Taken our quotes from here Charley as we had to pay for an empty run otherwise.

As for Diane Abbott ....well words escape me :-)

Having moved nearly 20 times the advice i would give is don't use Brittannia.

I can't wait for Dead Ringers to do their next Politics Show "Diane Abbott???" Impression.
It was painful to listen to her, I kept thinking somebody please pull a switch and silence her

Sorry nana didn't answer your post, but I agree it hardly fills you with confidence in them as a firm does it? You wonder if the chaos around the office spills into the removal side.Probably not, but causes doubt!

(Tee hee!)

Haha, anyone can have a bad day ( and get their estimates wrong) rather like the interview with Dianne Abbot.

I'd certainly knock that firm on the head, N&G. I think moving is one of the most stressful things you can do. The transactions over the sale of our house got so complicated because of problems at each end of the chain that it turned into a last minute rush we had no control over. We only just had time to get quotes, and chose a local firm I had engaged before for an office move. They were brilliant. Hope you find someone good.

I hope that you will be able to find a company that at least can spell its own name=- maybe it is a bit much expecting them to spell your DH's even if it is simple.

When I moved here I ended up sharing a van with the couple moving out because mine had gone totally AWOL. A very stressful time.

Are you looking locally where you live or are you getting quotes from firms in Norfolk? Better luck next time.

I am impressed that you are so organised.